Saturday, March 17, 2007

Fra Angelico Paintings on the Market

A pair of Renaissance paintings worth more than £1 million that were found hanging in the spare room of a terraced home in Oxford are likely to be lost to the nation. The discovery of the long-lost Fra Angelico masterpieces last year stunned the art world. But it looks as if the paintings will be sold abroad because an export licence will almost certainly be granted.The late Jean Preston bought the panels in the United States for £200 in the 1960s, and brought them back to the UK in the 1990s. Export licences are never refused for works that have been in the country for less than 50 years because they are not deemed to be part of the national heritage. It means that some of the world’s wealthiest museums and collectors will attend the sale at Duke’s auction house in Dorchester, Dorset, next month.